Former bad boy Stokes ready to be thrown into Test arena... and he's determined to stop Aussies' rule

Ben Stokes is adamant that he has put his off-field problems behind him and is ready to make his Test debut for England in the toughest circumstances possible.

The Durham all-rounder, who was due to play for England in their two-day tour match here in Alice Springs, which started on Thursday night, is one of three candidates for the middle-order place that has become vacant following the sad departure from this tour of Jonathan Trott.

It is less than 10 months since Stokes’s England future was in doubt after he was sent home from the Lions tour of Australia for disciplinary reasons.

Whole new ball game: Ben Stokes throws an Australian Rules football during practice at Traeger Park near Alice Springs, then picks up a cricket ball (below) and gets ready to chuck that in

Bat and ball: Stokes plays a few shots in the nets (left) and looks relaxed after having a hit

Persistently breaking curfews by staying too long in the bar was said to be the problem then, but the 22-year-old is confident that his reputation for indiscipline is a thing of the past.

‘When I came back from Australia I set about putting everyone’s mind right, making sure that they knew I did want to play for England and get into this team,’ he said as the tourists prepared to play a Chairman’s XI here in the Outback. ‘I think I’ve done the right things and gone about it the right way and I’m here today, so that’s brilliant.

‘Obviously what happened wasn’t great, something that I’m not proud of. But I did set myself out to change it all around and get Andy Flower thinking, “This guy’s serious in what he wants to do”. Put in the hard work and you get rewards, and being here has been a great reward for me.’

Flower is a team director who sets the highest standards for his players but he is also prepared to give any ‘problem’ players a second chance.

BEN STOKES: A KIWI WITH HUGE NATURAL TALENT

Stokes was born in Christchurch, New Zealand in 1991 and did not move to England until he was 12. He comes from a sporting family and is the son of Ged, a Kiwi rugby league international who also coached the Serbian national team. He signed a two-year contract with Durham when he was 18.

His first wicket in senior cricket was that of former England batsman Mark Ramprakash, who was bowled in a one-day match between Durham and Surrey at The Oval in 2009. It came with his third legal delivery and he finished with figures of two for 22 as Durham won by 60 runs. Ramprakash made his Test debut two days after Stokes was born.

Stokes has a one-year-old son, Layton, with his partner Claire. Layton’s godfather is his father’s Durham team-mate, leg-spinner Scott Borthwick.

‘He is the type of bloke who, if he sees you working hard and willing to do the things that he wants to see from his cricketers, then he will respond to that,’ said Stokes. ‘I guess if you ever get on his bad side he has shown that he can put that behind him and everyone just has to put in the work and do the right things by the right people.’

Stokes, born in Christchurch to a New Zealand rugby league international who took his family to Cumbria when Ben was a young boy, is a genuine all-rounder who would offer bowling that can touch 90mph as well as his hard-hitting left-handed batting if he gets the nod for the second Test in Adelaide next week, ahead of Jonny Bairstow and Gary Ballance.

But England think of Stokes as a work in progress, and whether they believe his batting is ready for a place in what has been a brittle middle order remains open to question. The Durham man remains the outsider of the three, unless England want to go into the second Test with two spinners once they have seen the drop-in Adelaide pitch.

In the balance: Gary Ballance, who is in contention for the second Test, stretches

Leading role: England captain Alastair Cook will have a lot on his mind as he tries to finalise the batting line-up

Stokes is convinced he is ready, saying: ‘I’ve got to be ready. It’s the Ashes, it’s the pinnacle of cricket. If I do go in there I would be the new boy and I’m ready for that and probably ready for quite a lot of stick too.’

That verbal battle has been the week’s major talking point. ‘We’re in competition and a war, as it’s like out there, so things can get a bit heated and everyone’s got that competitive side to them,’ he said. ‘It definitely came out in that last day in Brisbane. But I’ll be ready.

‘Even sat there on the bench over the four days at the Gabba, the intensity was really high. I got a buzz just sat there with the bib on running the drinks out. It was a great experience, the first time I’ve ever experienced it and something that I’ll never forget. Hopefully the next Test we’ll be the victors and get one back.’

And he knows that if he does make it into the Adelaide team, then his Kiwi background is bound to be brought up by the Aussie sledgers. ‘It would be pretty obvious, wouldn’t it?’ said Stokes.

Catching practice: Ballance, Panesar and Stokes take part in a fielding drill

Keeping together: Jonny Bairstow (left), another candidate to come into the side for the second Test, dons the gloves as Matt Prior (right) stands at slip

Playing a different tune: Barmy Army trumpeter Billy Cooper plays the didgeridoo at Traeger Park

‘If it does come up I would just laugh because I’m here with the Three Lions. If they decide to get into that I will get them back in Geordie slang and they won’t understand us!’

Meanwhile, Tim Bresnan, who has been missing since the fourth Test of last summer with a stress fracture of his back, stepped up his own claims to return for England in next week’s second Test.

The Yorkshire bowler took four for 31, to add to his earlier half-century with the bat, for the England Performance Programme in their match against a Queensland XI in Brisbane.

‘So far so good,’ said England one-day coach Ashley Giles, who is with the second string. ‘The results are pleasing. He’s got some runs under his belt and got some good wickets. He’s bowled with good control and pace as well. He’s feeling fine, he looks in pretty good shape and he’s got a lot out of this game so far.’